A ‘scent journey’ through the Korean peninsula
Artist Koo Jeong-a explains the deeply personal thinking behind her exhibition in Venice
Fashion, beauty and art have always found common ground, as South Korean artist Koo Jeong-a is well aware.
Koo, the artist behind the South Korean pavilion at this month’s Venice Biennale in Italy, is known for large-scale and transformative installations that play with space and the senses.
Curated by Lee Seol-hui and Jacob Fabricius, Koo’s Venice exhibition, titled “Odorama Cities”, which opened on Saturday, evokes a portrait of the Korean peninsula through scent.
For the project, the artist collaborated with Korean fragrance brand Nonfiction. Together, they translated and categorised Koo’s research into 17 distinct scent experiences, as well as a commercial scent that will soon be available for purchase.
In populating the physical space with interpersonal connections, narrative threads, natural elements and digital technologies, the installation builds on Koo’s oeuvre while exposing the artist’s work to a broader global audience.
Fashion-lovers may already know Koo from Loewe’s autumn/winter 2023 campaign, which featured the artist and was photographed by brand favourite Juergen Teller.
Ahead of the unveiling of “Odorama Cities”, Koo about scent memories, new-found self-care rituals and the pragmatic luxury of a timeless wardrobe.
“Odorama Cities” creates a “scent journey” with fragrances representing different Korean cities. How did you come up with this concept?
I wanted to talk about a transnational, more inclusive concept of the nation, by representing the Korean peninsula with scents collected in the form of scent stories through an open call.
It started with a question about scent memories of Korea, not only limited to Koreans but people who visited Korea, spent time there, or those who were adopted or live outside Korea but have a story to tell about the scent of Korea. The stories are from long ago to the recent past, and we received 600 submissions from June to September 2023.
Was this your first time working with scent? What was the creative and production process like, and what was rewarding and challenging about the medium?
My first exhibition with scent was in 1996, when I was living in a small studio on the top of a building in the centre of Paris.
This show exhibited mothballs over three days in my studio while I was moving out to celebrate the moment of change.
Since the early 1990s, I have been making immersive installations that transform spaces such as apartments, galleries or subway stations into environments that appeal to all the senses. The immersion comes from various elements to engage an audience on multiple sensory levels.
I often incorporate light, sound, scent and digital features alongside timely imaginaries [values and symbols that make up a society] with the capacity to transform into large-scale sculpture and painting. I also use film and animation to reinvent architectural spaces to create environments that envelop viewers in a unique atmosphere.
The concept behind my art is to stimulate the abstract layers of senses and evoke emotional or introspective responses by combining different sensory dimensions that challenge the medium. I invite viewers to explore the boundaries between reality and imagination, encouraging them to become active audiences.
This approach allows for deeply personal and intersubjective phenomena as each individual’s experience of the artwork is shaped by their own perceptions and sensations.
What are you hoping visitors to the Biennale will take away from the installation and experience?
“Odorama Cities” speaks a crosscultural dialogue. I am working with people whom I have never met and who do not know each other.
Through “Odorama Cities”, I am interested in how art can impact and enhance our lived experience of the world, leading us towards a more ecstatic vision of reality.
It is about imagining our own version of the world within the fabric of the one that we are living in.
What role does scent play in this experience?
Scent can unify a world, a remarkable vision, building layered personal connections. One cannot create new knowledge without a foundation of memories. Memory is dynamic, it does not have a precise place in the brain.
What fragrances, if any, do you wear? Do you have any daily rituals?
I do not wear scent day to day, because I like the natural scent that comes from my daily practice. I do pay attention to a rainy-day tree smell or wet dog smell, there are endless options.
Scent is also tied to ritual and routine. Most of mine are performed in the early morning – I take notes and stretch, it gives [me] a focused daily output.
You featured in Loewe’s pre-autumn 2023 campaign. I would love to know about your approach to fashion and dressing, and whether it overlaps with your artistic process.
I love timeless designs – my favourite items are made of natural fabric and can be wearable daily but also [professionally].
I recently discovered washing my hair with rock salt. I am also working with a fashion collaborator for a [project] that I would like to launch alongside my public outdoor skatepark project at Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin, Germany, this year.
Scent can unify a world … building layered personal connections KOO JEONG-A